So you want a list of the best guns for women? I have a hard time recommending just one, but since I get this question all the time, here are some of my favorites. They may not be perfect for every woman, but they’re a good place to start. These four handgun categories all have a place in a good personal-defense plan, and the specific models can be found chambered for reliable self-defense rounds.

Full-Size Semi-Auto Pistol

In terms of the best full-size guns for women, like the Smith & Wesson M&P pistols in both full-sized and compact models. They’re simple, ergonomic and come with three different, easily changeable backstraps to customize fit to your hand.

In the full-sized versions, they’re excellent for training, but a tad big for concealment. They offer excellent ammunition capacity, and with the built-in rail for attaching a dedicated light, make great house or car guns.

These are extremely soft-shooting pistols, and felt recoil across all three chamberings I’ve tried (9 mm, .40 S&W and .45 ACP) is insignificant.

Compact Semi-Auto

In terms of a compact semi-auto pistol, I’m a big fan of the Springfield Armory EMP, ColtDefender or Smith & Wesson M&P Compacts. There is more variety among these choices, as they are offered in different calibers and each feels different in the hand.

The biggest difference is found in their triggers. This includes trigger pull weight—the actual feel and movement of the trigger as it is pressed and the consistency of both. A trigger is not just a matter of personal preference, it can affect your shooting significantly.

External safeties also vary, so make sure you know where they are and can reach them well enough to disengage them easily. Each of these pistols will hold more ammo than small, five-shot revolvers, in some cases more than doubling the capacity. They will, however, be heavier and bulkier, so consider how and where you’re going to be carrying.

Medium-Sized Revolvers

Medium frame revolver preferences of mine include the Smith & Wesson K-frame revolvers, Ruger SP101 (non-snub nose) or the GP100. These small- to medium-framed revolvers are available in configurations that allow firing .38 Spl. as well as .357 Mag.

They are great, all-around revolvers—which in themselves are great all-around handguns when thinking about the best guns for women. Simple to fire and easy to load and unload, they are a good size for shooting multiple rounds at the range or in training as well as for carrying. They also make good car or house guns. In this medium-frame configuration, even .357 Mag. loads are comfortable to shoot.

Like most revolvers, they can be fitted with a wide variety of grips, allowing modification to fit a wide range of hand and finger sizes. Revolvers also generally don’t have sharp edges or rub points that can wear on inexperienced hands.

Snub-Nose Revolvers

For pocket revolvers, my choice is the Ruger LCR and Smith & Wesson J-frames. These are compact, five-shot revolvers and in their various models can handle anything from a .38 Spl. to .357 Mag. cartridges.

Light enough to always carry, they are also small enough to easily conceal, which lands them on my list of the best guns for women. I carry mine whenever possible, and with an internal hammer, I can fire it through a pocket or purse. The downside is they hold only five rounds—so always have at least one full reload on you, and know how to use it.

These true pocket guns are a handful to shoot, but they aren’t unpleasant. I routinely fire 30 to 50 rounds in practice. That said, I wouldn’t want to fire many more in a single session.

It’s been a few years, but shotguns for home defense seem to be making a comeback. It’s not that rifles and handguns won’t work well for home defense, it’s just that shotguns have so much going for them in that realm.

With the array of ammunition available, shotguns can shoot everything from “less-lethal” loads (think rubber bullets, bean bags and others) to snake shot, to buckshot (.30+ caliber projectiles!) to 400-plus grain slugs. While most of us who aren’t in law enforcement or the military will negotiate shorter distances with our defensive shotguns, the scattergun’s versatility does offer the ability to shoot ammo that can address targets at much longer ranges. On the flipside, there is shotgun ammunition that will travel and/or penetrate less, and that might be appropriate for your circumstance. When we add to this the array of accessories also available for them (which isn’t always necessarily a good thing; we’ll touch more on this later), shotguns might be the most versatile home defense firearms you can get.

My college years were spent in a tough, crime-ridden town. During freshman orientation week, a friend a was robbed by what he insisted was “a gang of nine-year-olds!” These young hoodlums somehow managed to take my friend’s bicycle, camera, and wallet. After I stopped laughing I couldn’t help ask how this “gang” managed to ambush him. “Well,” he said, “I was taking some cool photographs of the neighborhood….”

I immediately realized he wasn’t paying attention. Not having situational awareness explains how most people get mugged. When people don’t pay attention to their surroundings, they have no chance to see bad guys coming until it’s too late.

Though psychologists tell us keeping ourselves safe is a basic human instinct, I have found that surviving is something we have to learn how to do. Also, if you chose to carry a gun concealed, you certainly want avoid that worst-case scenario of having to use a gun to defend your life. Actually you have taken on added responsibility to pay attention.

Get over it. In fact, accept it. As with any mechanical device, things can go wrong with your pistol, and they will. Your acceptance of this will allow you to stay calm and fix the issue to your best ability. Your job is to know which problems you can solve—and how.

Longtime firearm instructor Il Ling New has provided her top 10 tips on becoming a better marksman.

It’s no secret that, to improve any skill, you’ve got to practice, practice and practice some more. So, if you want to be a better gunfighter, you’ve got to dedicate yourself to practicing with your sidearm—and yes, there’s a right way to go about it. Here are 10 suggestions that can help focus your practice.

1. Learn and understand the safety rules. I recommend the Four Safety Rules. Adhere to them without fail, and be able to do so without fear. This is the foundation of being in control of yourself, and thus, your firearm. With these, you control your situation.

2. Learn how your firearm works—inside and out, backward and forward. You don’t have to learn every part, or every function, but you should understand it well enough to be able to explain the main buttons and levers, and the basic mechanics of how it fires.

3. Get aggressive. Now that you get it—the firearm, that is (see No. 1 and No. 2, above), there’s no reason to be afraid of it in your hands. Yes, there will be some recoil—especially if you need to fire more than once—which is something you always should be prepared for. So get strong on the gun. Understand that your body position can help or hinder your ability to manage it, and learn to use your entire body properly.

4. Focus on the job at hand. As Jeff Cooper used to say, “The purpose of shooting is hitting.” Be in the present (you never knew that yoga and meditation practice would help, did you?). Don’t worry about the noise, don’t think about the recoil. And, to keep your eye properly on your sights, don’t look for the holes! As much as is humanly possible, imagine that target out there is a bad person intent on harming your most beloved. You need to stop it, and you have the power to do it. Apply the mechanics you were taught, and get it done.

5. Take breaks when you want to. Throughout your shooting session, give yourself time to process the mental and physical efforts you’re exerting—these can be considerable if you’re training properly. Don’t be in a rush to finish a sequence or a session.

Whether you consider yourself an expert hunter or this hunting season will be your first, it’s always important to review safety rules. Il Ling New reviews hunter safety in this week’s Tips & Tactics video.